The highlight of the 2013 Savannah Stopover will certainly be the free concert in Forsyth Park on March 8 by the Athens-based band of Montreal.

Remarkably, that will be the group’s first gig ever in Savannah.

Savannah Stopover has partnered with Visit Savannah to host of Montreal. Forsyth seems a perfect venue for the group’s famously theatrical performances.

But the three-day indie music festival has also announced 39 other acts, so there’s no reason to fixate on a single headliner. More touring bands will be confirmed soon, and a full lineup of local performers will also be booked at various downtown venues.

The Stopover venues have not been finalized, but there are a couple of intriguing additions.

Club One’s street level dance floor should be ideal for electronica and a variety of upbeat genres. The proximity to other venues near City Market is also a big plus.

And Stopover will also use the renovated ballroom at the Knights of Columbus on Liberty Street. That space can hold hundreds and should work perfectly for some of the festival’s bigger draws.

Of the bands announced so far, only five played Stopover in 2012 — Turbo Fruits, Delicate Steve, Cheyenne Marie Mize, Country Mice and Christopher Paul Stelling.

A number of others have played Stopover-produced gigs, including Ben Sollee, Ponderosa, Shark? and this mountain. (You can also catch Johnson City’s this mountain Dec. 1 at The Jinx.)

The Whigs will also be performing — that gig is sure to draw a big crowd of fans who listened to them routinely in Athens.

I have caught almost all of those returning acts and hope to see them again in March.

But when Stopover’s full schedule is released, I’ll probably prioritize the new.

The festival seems to have a bit less music this year out of the Brooklyn indie scene, with a bit more of a Southern edge.

The Last Bison — a stirring, must-see band from Chesapeake, Va. — will play the opening night party.

Henry Wagons is a flat-out great outlaw country singer from Australia.

Birmingham-based Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires describe their sound this way on Bandcamp: “This is not country music. Really, it’s city music. It’s Southern, but it’s not the kind sold on TV.” The band’s Facebook page lists their interests as “burn piles and swimming holes.”

I’m also anxious also to hear 21-year-old rocker Mac DeMarco, who could be a breakout star by the time March rolls around.

Things are awfully fluid in the music industry today. For one long weekend, Savannah Stopover puts us right in the middle of that stream.

Passes are now on sale at www.savannahstopover.com.

And on Nov. 30, the festival is hosting a party at ThincSavannah, 35 Barnard St., with a secret show by a 2013 festival performer. Check out the Stopover Facebook page for more details.